1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to automotive vehicle doors, more particularly to hinge arrangements and door openings for automotive doors.
2. Background Art
The prior art has provided vehicles with doors pivotally mounted about vertical hinges. Various vehicles require large door openings, such as two-door vehicles or vehicles with a compact height including sports cars and roadsters. In these types of vehicles, a large door with a vertical hinge requires a substantially large lateral space for opening the door.
The prior has also provided doors that are pivotally connected to the vehicle about a horizontal hinge. Such doors often require the occupant to duck beneath the door in order to enter the vehicle.
The prior has also provided doors that are pivotally connected to the vehicle at a forward end of the door such that a rear end of the door is pivoted up and away from the vehicle, while the forward end is displaced along a forward region of the door opening. Such doors often limit clearance at the forward region of the door opening.